Tyler Schilling smiles as he uses his mind to lift his left arm and closes his fingers for the first time. (Grant M. Haller/Seattle Post-Intelligencer)

Iraq war veteran Sgt. Juan Arredondo, 27, operates his mechanical hand with what’s left of his forearm muscles. But Harborview Medical Center is going a step further with Schilling — actually rewiring the nerves in a guy who lost his arm above the elbow so he move his hand with his mind.

P-I reporter Carol Smith wrote the gripping account of the procedure, which along with Arredondo’s headline-grabbing hand represents something of a medical breakthrough in prosthetics research and technology. Smith tells the Big Blog:

From the “iron glove” of the second century B.C. to the computerized knee of this one, advances in materials and technology have pushed the science of prosthetics forward. But the concept of redesigning the body itself — retooling its neural circuitry so to speak — is a quantum leap forward for amputees.

Although still in its infancy, the applications for this type of mind-machine connection are mind-boggling — they could lead to “thought-controlled exo-skeletons” that operate like personal armored tanks for soldiers, or devices that could help spinal-cord injured patients regain mobility. It’s exciting that Seattle is at the forefront of some of this research.

Patients here are benefiting from the pioneering efforts of doctors in Chicago, and in particular from the efforts of a patient named Jesse Sullivan, a lineman who lost both his arms at the shoulder when he was nearly electrocuted. Read about Jesse’s amazing progress here.

Schilling’s arm isn’t as articulated as Arredondo’s bionic hand. But one day it could be. Here’s how Schilling’s surgeon, Dr. Doug Smith, tells it to Smith:

“In general ­ the first application for the bionic arm is for individuals with amputation in the forearm who still have some of the muscle that makes your normal hand work. My understanding of this first-generation advanced hand takes advantage of those muscles left in the forearm that normally work with the correct brain thoughts.

“What Tyler had, is to rewire the nerves so that some upper arm muscle now works with “hand control” brain thoughts. As the new hand technology improves to the next level, Tyler’s added muscle control will certainly make him a better candidate than another above elbow amputee who never had the upper arm nerve transfers.”